Crayon holder



INVEQTQR:

H. F. WATERS CRAYON HOLDER Filed March 19, 1945 FIE.

Nov. 16, 1948 Patented Nov. 16, i948 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CRAYON HOLDER Harry F. Waters, New York, N. Y.

Application March 19, 1945, Serial No. 583,459

3 Claims. 1

The improved holder comprising the present invention is primarily adapted for use in adjustably and removably retaining pencil lead, crayon, chalk, charcoal or other Suitable substance in proper position for writing or drawing purposes. The invention however is capable of other uses and the same may, if desired, with or without modification, be employed for holding other substances or materials, as for example, lipstick, eyebrow make-up, antiseptic sticks and the like, and in such instances the substance or material will be adjustably held for proper application thereof.

It is among the principal objects of the inven-' tion to provide a holder of this type which is extremely simple inits construction, yet in which the element or substance to be held may readily be inserted and firmly held in position against dislodgment while at the same time provision is made for progressively feeding the element into and out of the holder proper for storage therein or for use as the case may be.

An equally important object of the invention is to provide a holder for a crayon or the like which is comprised of a minimum number of parts, all of which may be easily assembled therein, resulting in an article which may be manufactured at a small cost.

Another object of the invention is to provid a crayon holder which, when assembled and the crayon installed therein, may be easily manipulated, by one hand if desired, to feed the crayon into or out of the same with a minimum of effort.

Another object is to provide a crayon holder which is attractive in its design, andv which attractiveness is made possible and enhanced by the particular mechanical construction employed for feeding the crayon into and out of the holder proper.

With these and other objects in View which will become more readily apparent presently, the invention consists in thenovel construction, combination and arrangement-ofparts now to be more fully illustrated, described and claimed.

In the accompanying single sheet of drawings several embodiments of the invention have been shown. In these drawings:

Figure 1 is a side elevational View of an assembled crayon holder constructed in accordance with the principles of the present invention.

Figure 2 is a fragmentary side elevational view, partly in section, of the holder shown in Figure 1.

Figure 3 is a fragmentary side elevational view, partly in section, of a modified form of manipulating sleeve designed for use 'in the holder proper of Figure 1.

2 Figure 4 is a top plan view of the structure shown in Figure 3.

Figure 5 is a side elevational view of another modified form of manipulating sleeve with certain portions thereof broken away to more clearly reveal the nature of the invention.

Figure 6 is a side elevational View of yet another modified form of manipulating sleeve, and

Figure 7 is a plan view of the sleeve shown in Figure 6.

Referring now to the drawings in detail, and particularly to Figures 1 and 2, in the preferred embodiment the invention involves in its general organization a generally flexible, tubular, openended holder proper which is designated in its entirety at IE! and which consists of a pair of intertwined spiral elements which are formed of flexible or yielding material. These elements [2 and M are of such pitch and extent that the two of them, when assembled, present adjacent convolutions that in their entirety cooperate to make up a generally cylindrical tubular element in which there is adapted to be received a crayon IE or other rod-like material. If desired the two spiral members l2 and 14 may be formed of metal or of a plastic material and they may be colored in a contrasting manner in order to present a pleasing and aesthetic effect to the eye.

If a crayon or pencil lead is employed, the same may be provided with a pointed end [8 and one end of the member I0 may have applied thereto a conventional cup-shaped eraser 19. If the element I6 be a lipstick or the like a suitable cap may be substituted for the eraser I9.

The crayon i6 is adapted to fit snugly within the holder Ill and its upper end is received within the central bore of a hollow tubular sleeve 20 which is formed of relatively thin material. The sleeve is formed with opposed trunnions 22 of pin-like formation and of an extent suflicient to cause them to project through the adjacent convolutions of the holder elements 12 and I4.

Aflixed to the outer ends of the trunnions 22 is a manipulating sleeve 24, likewise formed of relatively thin material which may be either metal or plastic or other suitable material. The sleeve 24 is adapted to fit snugly about the exterior of the member 10 and toward this end its internal diameter is approximately the same as the maximum external diameter of the spiral elements I2 and M of the member 10.

From the above description it will be seen that as the sleeve 24 is rotated in one direction or the other the inner sleeve 20 will be rotated therewith, thus causing the crayon IE to follow the same rotational movements. The trunnions 22, riding in, one direction or the other between the adjacent convolutions of the members l2 and I4, will serve to carry the entire crayon-holding unit 20, 22, 24 in a longitudinal direction relative to the member Ill and the crayon is will be fed into or out of the latter as desired.

The nature of the material of which the spiral members I2 and M are formed is such that a certain degree of friction will exist between the trunnions 22 and edges or the members 12 and I 4 so that writing pressure may be applied to the pointed end H; of the crayon IS without disturbing the desired adjustment of the latter.

In Figures 3 and 4 a modified form of crayonholding manipulating member is shown. In this form of the invention the trunnions 22' are in the form of fiat struts which occupy planes which are at an angle to the axis commensurate with the angle of pitch of the convolutions of the two spiral members which cooperate to make up the holder 10 of Figure 1.

In Figure 5 the construction of the crayon holding member 26", 22", 24" is similar to that of the preceding figures with the exception that the central holding sleeve 20 is slit longitudinally as at 2!" so that the sleeve may yield and grip the upper end of the crayon with a yielding frictional fit.

As shown in Figs. 6 and 7, a special sleeve 24a is provided with a series of three inwardly directed stepped radial lugs 22a adapted to directly engage the crayon, the angle of pitch of the lugs conforming to the angle of pitch of the convolutions of the flexible holder, which in this case will consist of three intertwined spiral elements, as contrasted with the pair of intertwined spiral elements l2 and hi of Figs. 1 and 2.

The inner ends of these members or lugs 22a may be bevelled so that these ends may serve as cutting threads for reception of the end of the crayon when the latter is twisted or threaded into the space existing centrally between the members. In this manner the crayon will be firmly and frictionally held in position within the manipulating holder,

The invention is not to be limited to the exact arrangement of parts shown in the accompanying drawing or described in this specification as various changes in the details of construction may be resorted to without departing from the spirit of the invention. Only insofar as the invention has particularly been pointed out in the accompanying claims is the same to be limited.

For example, while the holder H1 is shown as being comprised of two substantially contiguous spiral elements 12 and it, these two elements may well be formed integrally, thus forming a single spiral member. In such an instance the single spiral member is of a pitch angle which renders the adjacent convolutions thereof contiguous or nearly so. In the following claims such an interpretation may be given thereto while at the same time the use of plural independent elements is not to be disregarded.

Having described the invention, what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. As a unitary article of manufacture, a crayon holder comprising a substantially tubular member consisting of a plurality of adjacent strips of material arranged in parallel relationship and each following a spiral path about a common central axis, said member being adapted to receive therein in slidable relationship a crayon, and a manipulation member designed for attachment to the crayon and projecting outwardly between adjacent convolutions of said strips a slight distance beyond the confines of the tubular member, said tubular member forming a shank for the crayon holder adapted for direct contact with the fingers of the user.

2. A holder for crayons or the like comprising a tubular member formed of adjacent strips of material which are of spiral form and arranged in parallel relationship with adjacent convolutions thereof arranged contiguously, said holder being adapted to receive therein a crayon for projection from an end thereof, a manipulating holder for said crayon having frictional engagement with the latter and having a portion extending radially outwardly and projecting between adjacent convolutions of said strips and available exteriorly of the tubular member for manual adjustment.

3. As a unitary article of manufacture, a crayon holder comprising a substantially tubular mem ber consisting of a plurality of adjacent strips of material arranged in parallel relationship and each following a spiral path about a common axis and designed for reception therein of a crayon or the like, and a ring-like manipulating member surrounding the tubular member and having an internal diameter slightly larger than the external diameter of the latter, said manipulating member including a plurality of substantially radial and inwardly extending arms which are axially displaced and which pass between adjacent convolutions of said strips and are adapted to engage said crayon in holding relationship.

HARRY F. WATERS.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 745,053 Hafner Nov. 24, 1903 1,450,436 Fitton Apr. 3, 1923 1,774,699 Chelton Sept. 2, 1930 1,869,198 Keeran July 26, 1932 2,028,380 Deli Jan. 21, 1936 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 13,148 Great Britain 0 

